Edward Blythin (October 10, 1884 – February 14, 1958) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

politician and jurist of the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

party who served as the 46th

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

Life and career

Blythin was born October 10, 1884, in the small village of Newmarket in

Flintshire , settlement_type = County , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_flag = , image_shield = Arms of Flint ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. His father was a farmer. Relatively well-educated, he became a bookkeeper for a coal company in Wales. In 1906, he emigrated, ending up in Cleveland, Ohio, where he landed another bookkeeping job, for a real estate agency, a job he held for 10 years. During this time, he attended

Cleveland State University College of Law Cleveland State University College of Law is the law school of Cleveland State University, a public research university in Cleveland, Ohio. The school traces its origins to Cleveland Law School (founded in 1897), which merged in 1946 with the John ...

at night, earning his law degree in 1916. Blythin then turned to the practice of law. In 1935, Blythin accepted appointment as an assistant to the Cleveland city law director. He became law director in 1940. In January 1941, when

Harold H. Burton Harold Hitz Burton (June 22, 1888 – October 28, 1964) was an American politician and lawyer. He served as the 45th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, as a U.S. Senator from Ohio, and as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Stat ...

resigned as Cleveland mayor in order to take a seat in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

, Blythin, as law director, automatically succeeded Burton to the mayor's office. In November, however, Blythin failed to win election to the seat, losing to Democrat

Frank Lausche Frank John Lausche (; November 14, 1895 – April 21, 1990) was an American Democratic politician from Ohio. He served as the 47th mayor of Cleveland and the 55th and 57th governor of Ohio, and also served as a United States Senator from Ohio ...

. In 1943, Blythin left private law practice to accept an executive position at

Western Reserve University Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

. In 1949, Blythin was elected to a judgeship in the

Cuyahoga County Cuyahoga County ( or ) is a large urban County (United States), county located in the Northeast Ohio, northeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. It is situated on the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the Canada–United States border, U.S.- ...

Court of Common Pleas A court of common pleas is a common kind of court structure found in various common law jurisdictions. The form originated with the Court of Common Pleas at Westminster, which was created to permit individuals to press civil grievances against one ...

, where he served until his death. During his tenure on the court, Blythin presided over the notorious 1954 murder trial of

Sam Sheppard Samuel Holmes Sheppard, Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, D.O. ( – ) was an American Neurosurgery, neurosurgeon. He was exonerated in 1966, having been convicted of the 1954 murder of his pregnant wife, Marilyn Reese Sheppard. The case was con ...

. His stewardship of the trial was later overturned by the United States Supreme Court which termed the trial "a Roman Holiday." In fact, famous columnist

Dorothy Kilgallen Dorothy Mae Kilgallen (July 3, 1913 – November 8, 1965) was an American columnist, journalist, and television game show panelist. After spending two semesters at the College of New Rochelle, she started her career shortly before her 18th birth ...

reputedly wrote that in a private conference just prior to the trial beginning, Blythin told her, in his opinion, Sheppard was guilty. According to friends and family members, this private conference never occurred but was Ms Killgallen's retaliation for the judge admonishing her for showing up late and disrupting the court proceedings. However, the appellate record contains affidavits signed by others who claimed to have heard Judge Blythin make statements similar to the statement Killgallen claimed to have heard.

Personal life and death

Blythin married Jane Rankin on April 3, 1913, and they had five children, Robert, Arthur, Glen, Jane, and William. Judge Blythin suffered a severe

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

at his home in

Parma Heights, Ohio Parma Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States and a western suburb of Cleveland. Parma Heights is surrounded on the north, east and south by the larger city of Parma, Ohio, Parma. The cities of Brook Park a ...

, on February 12, 1958. He was admitted to Lutheran Hospital in Cleveland, where he suffered a second heart attack and died on February 14. He was buried in

Lake View Cemetery Lake View Cemetery is a privately owned, nonprofit garden cemetery located in the cities of Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, and East Cleveland in the U.S. state of Ohio. Founded in 1869, the cemetery was favored by wealthy families during the Gil ...

in Cleveland.

References

* ''The Encyclopedia Of Cleveland History'' by Cleveland Bicentennial Commission (Cleveland, Ohio), David D. Van Tassel (Editor), and John J. Grabowski (Editor) {{DEFAULTSORT:Blythin, Edward 1884 births 1958 deaths Mayors of Cleveland 20th-century American politicians People from Flintshire People from Parma Heights, Ohio American people of Welsh descent Cleveland State University College of Law alumni